THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 10, 1995 TAG: 9511100524
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT HARPER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
The number of adult crabs in the lower Chesapeake Bay this year is ``extremely low,'' a leading crab biologist warned Thursday night, raising concerns that more protections are needed for the prized crustacean.
This latest prognosis, however, received an icy reception from most members of the state Blue Crab Advisory Subcommittee, who said they simply don't believe it.
``As far as I'm concerned, I think this data ain't worth a damn,'' said Wayne Abbott, a Rappahannock River waterman.
Composed mostly of watermen and seafood merchants, the advisory panel met for more than three hours Thursday to discuss a package of suggested restrictions on Virginia's ailing crab stocks.
Rom Lipcius, a marine biologist and crab expert at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, released new data that described the adult population as one of the lowest since 1988, mainly because of heavy harvesting.
Nonetheless, the panel rejected most of the crabbing limits recommended by a legislative study group last month, and criticized research by Lipcius and state agencies as flawed or just wrong.
Most watermen were especially upset with a much-publicized forecast by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission that the 1995 crab harvest would be the smallest in 36 years. The forecast was made without data from this autumn, when, watermen say, crabs have suddenly become more plentiful.
``Everybody keeps talking about a disaster and we've had a tremendous turnaround the last three months,'' said Jeff Crockett, a commercial crabber and president of the Tanginer Island Watermen's Association.
Crockett persuaded subcommittee chairman Timothy Hayes, a Richmond attorney, to let watermen and seafood industry representatives compose their own package of restrictions by the end of the month.
They would then be presented to state officials and politicians studying the crab's recent plight as an alternative to a host of other restrictions, including a 300-trap limit on licensed watermen and a monthlong ban on taking pregnant female crabs, known as sponge crabs.
Billy Moore, a Poquoson crabber and seafood merchant, described the 300-trap limit, which the state of Maryland enforces in the northern half of the Bay, as ``nothing but window-dressing.''
``It wouldn't do a bit of good,'' Moore said. ``It'll only hurt those of us trying to make a living on the water.''
Hayes urged watermen to embrace one or several of the proposed restrictions, arguing that if the Virginia Marine Resources Commission does not enact some type of crabbing limits, the Virginia General Assembly will likely pass much tougher rules when it convenes in January.
For instance, Hayes said the Assembly will likely try to ban possession of sponge crabs year-round. So he urged the panel to favor a partial ban on a small segment of pregnant females that are visibly ready to give birth. These females have black sacks full of millions of eggs on their backs.
But the panel seemed determined to compose its own list of possible limits, saying even a partial ban could decimate parts of the crab industry. by CNB